


Skorgs: Zach Kentarou

by FarCryZine



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Alien Invasion, Alternate Universe - Military, Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Sex, Grinding, Hajime is their sergeant, Heterosexual Character, Idiots in Love, Kentarou is the same-ish, Kissing, Love/Hate, Name Changes, female yahaba, they battle huge alien rats like splinter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-16
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-01-18 08:36:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12384666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FarCryZine/pseuds/FarCryZine
Summary: The future looks bleak with the population reduced greatly by the invading alien rats. Sergeant Haj has gathered some special people to create a military resistance, but he needs them to work together as a team. Some, however, have trouble working together, though. A tough hood from Southie, Zach Kentarou, and a sweet young lady named Shige just can't seem to sync right. The ups and downs can be extreme, but they have to work it out in order to survive and protect the human race... can they though? Why can't Shige and Kentarou get along? Or do they...secretly...?





	1. Don't fuck with Kentarou's stuff

      Zach Kentarou woke up immediately from his dream, rubbing a thick-fingered hand over his face and over his buzzed short blonde hair. His first thought was _What time is it? What day?_ His second thought was _What the fuck does it matter what day it is?_

      Since the Skorgs invaded, everything was a scramble. They came, they saw, they conquered. They came from space. They saw with their beady rat eyes. They conquered easily. What that meant for us humans was: they came, we fought, we mostly died. We lost a lot of people. A lot. It was _not_ fucking going well.

      Zach swung his legs over the metal bunk in the barracks and started stretching his stocky upper body. He kept his mind blank, ignoring the hellish dream of past mistakes, the battles in the Entryway portals, and the gnashing gnarled teeth of Skorgs, and focused on his muscles. He fished in his sheets for the drab green army shirt he’d discarded last night, trying to be quiet in the barracks. There were only three of them in this bunkroom built for twenty. The other two from his team were still asleep.

      He got down on the cold floor to do a set of pushups. Halfway through, he heard a set of very measured footsteps coming down the hall. Most likely Sergeant Haj. He continued his routine. It was indeed the sergeant. He poked his black-haired head around the door, no smile, eyebrows drawn together, and said, “Kentarou. Squints briefing and suit check. C Lab. Twenty minutes.”

      Zach was up into a kneeling position to receive this info, breathing deep. His brow furrowed, mouth a straight line. He nodded acknowledgement to the sergeant. Just enough time for a quick shower and some food. This army life wasn't bad, no worse than the burning desolated streets of Boston, or the shitty dog-eat-dog neighborhoods before the Skorgs.

      Sergeant Haj turned and stalked back down the hall. He knew Zach Kentarou to be a good fighter, but very terse with his words. He noticed Zach was skittish for a tough hood, and would flinch occasionally if you caught him wrong. His blonde hair with black stripes in it wasn’t regulation…And he wasn’t sure if the guy just never slept or if he wore eyeliner…But in and before a fight he was a great asset to have. Haj never pushed him to follow protocol. If he got a nod instead of a ‘Yes, sir’ out of Zach Kentarou…well, he was okay with that. Had to take what we could get, now. God damn Skorgs.

      The ‘squints’—Zach learned—are what the everyone around here called the scientists, for reasons obvious to them. Zach stalked into C Lab with his inner defenses up, dressed in his camo pants and shirt and immediately saw his battle suit laid out on the illumination table. He stopped just inside the door. One lab tech was holding Zach’s huge left glove up and inspecting it, and the head squint, a thin middle-aged man with a beaky nose, faced Zach at the door, hands behind his back.

      It was time again for another equipment check. “Mr. Kentarou. I’ll just begin,” the head squint sniffed. “These gloves, I know, were spoils taken from a previous battle with the Skorgs. But we were wondering about your chest plate.”  

      Zach looked nervous. His eyes became small and shifty. “It’s mine,” Zach defended, glancing at the chest plate. It looked so heavy and solid against the illumination table, like it could fall through the plexiglass any second. It looked like an antique, something from another time, dense steel and the burden of weighty protection. He got tense. It was a piece of his life from before the army, back when he was just Kentarou, roaming the streets, before he had a…team. Sometimes he wanted to go back there, to that pain and loneliness that he was so familiar with. But he also—despite the war, the Skorgs, and the army shit—liked being here, being Zach, taking care of his…teammates. His eyes refocused again on the scientist and he repeated, “it’s mine, okay?”

      The black rings around his eyes, to the scientist, seemed to throb in the fluorescent lighting, giving the boy an intense, feral look. _Was he wearing makeup? Or was he lacking iron?_ “Yes, but where did you get it? Not from the army? Certainly not from us.” The other squint behind him chuckled at the absurdity.

      “I made it,” Zach gritted out. “During the first invasion. I…” He hated talking this much. He rubbed his eyes. What did they care? It worked didn’t it? He was powerful, wasn’t he?

      The head squint tilted his head down, looking over his glasses at the brooding boy. “Are you not at liberty to say?...The sergeant…”

      “A junk yard. South Boston.” Zach’s scowl was deep as he edged out an answer. His brow furrowed even more. The scowl seemed to settle naturally on his face, like it was his normal look—it was.

      The other squint spoke up. He’d lifted the bulky steel chest plate with some difficulty, “You welded this, Kentarou?”

      Zach merely grunted. The older scientist saw Zach tensing up, hands clenching. He looked like a dog with its hackles raised. His eyes were black now in their sunken, dark rings; his shaved blonde hair looked more bristly somehow.

      The older scientist broke in before things got ugly. “Oh, it’s very good, son, very good. We were just thinking you might like something a little more lightweight—maneuverable.” Zach didn’t like the way the man’s voice took on a wheedling edge. The other squint moved to hold up another Kevlar-type chest plate like a gameshow assistant. Suddenly there was a snort of laughter behind him and Zach Kentarou whirled around.

      Laurel was in the doorway, her blonde hair down, like before a battle. She wiggled her thin eyebrows and scrunched her little nose. “Gear upgrade?”

      Zach whipped back around to the squints, his cheeks flushed. “No. No thank you,” he gritted to the squint holding the Kevlar. Zach took one step protectively toward the steel chestplate. “Don’t fuck with it. It’s mine.” Another snort from Laurel. She thought it was hilarious how he hated everyone and everything. 

He wasn’t trying to be intimidating. He just wanted to get out of there. “Please.” He tried again. _Was this the right thing to say? Was he doing it right?_  “Don’t fuck—” He let out a huff like a tired dog. “I don’t need a new chest plate.” The squints gave up silently, and he turned to leave.

      It was Laurel’s turn to do a suit appraisal with the squints and she sauntered in, in her witchy way. “Another day another dollar, huh Zach?” She drawled as she passed him and he strode out. He grunted, arms clenched at his sides, eyes ringed in black. She shook her head at the situation, his attitude, their fight against the Skorgs, how she ended up here, the military, everything.

      Laurel hoped Shige woke up soon. Someone besides the sarge needed to keep Zach in line, before he scared anyone else. Though she didn’t doubt that Shige helped as much as antagonized Zach. Those two needed to get a clue and stop driving each other to violence. “Well then.” She put on her best devious grin. “What’s up, squints?”

 

      Sergeant Haj stood over the minimalist med bed Shige was recovering in. Shige was a regular looking twenty-something young lady, regular brown hair and brown eyes, nice face, but she was really a stickler about some things. She would hate the way this med lab bed was set up for one thing. The sarge knew Shige was waking up; he’d been watching the numbers slowly climb on the bed readout. He tapped his foot in time with the beeps, restlessly. Finally when she opened her eyes, he said, “Welcome back to the land of the living.”

      “Is that what you call it, sarge?” she asked groggily, putting a weak hand up to brush over her eyes, rubbing the sleep out of them. “What’s the hurry? More Skorgs on the way? I want to sleep more.” She attempted to turn over.

      “Don’t be a lazy ass now. Come on. Someone’s gotta hold Zach’s leash when I’m busy with the brass.” He chuckled, remembering how Kentarou had disarmed two former unit members just by stepping forward and glaring. Sergeant Haj walked around, arranging equipment, whacking the frame of her bed, trying to get her active.

      “What's he done now? That fucking guy,” she grumbled. “Sorry, sarge.”  She’d promised him she’d try to get along better with Zach Kentarou, though he could've helped her more in the last battle and she probably wouldn't have been hurt. He always wanted to do everything his way. She wanted to say to Sergeant Haj: _I have to practice you know. I need to work my suit better, obviously, and I can’t be policing him all the time. That’s not what I’m here for. He hates me anyway. And he likes you! So…what do you want from me?_ But she knew they all had to work together. Common enemy and all that.

      The sarge chuckled again at her mumbled grumbling, throwing pants at her. “Just get to the gym. We’re doing team practice today at 1400.”

      Zach stormed down the hall away from the squints and C Lab. His scowl hung like a black cloud over him. A few random people in the hall gave him a wide berth and looked away. Good. He liked it like that. No one needed to fucking look at him, or talk to him. They were all gonna die anyway. What’s the point? And fucking Shige had been in med lab for two whole days now, but that was Not His Fault! If she'd paid attention to her in shit in the Entryway and not tried to help other people...And Laurel was annoying him with her too cool attitude. The sarge had beat him at their last arm-wrestle. And he missed his fucking dog. The fucking Skorgs…he growled and held back from punching the wall.


	2. Your timing is shit

      When Shige had recovered enough, eaten, did some stretches, took a quick shower and made it down the empty expanse of halls to the gym, it was 1351 by her watch. Seeing the lack of people in the halls bummed her out as usual, just a reminder of how many people they’d lost, and a reminder that she was living on a military base that was just as deserted as the rest of the country. She tried to shake it out of her head as she came through the doorway and saw everyone in the echo-filled gym. Laurel and a squint and the sarge were together fiddling with Laurel’s suit. The two new guys from the other unit, Nate and Maki, were stretching and doing warmups, and of course, Zach was by himself, punching a huge spring bag in the corner.

      Shige’s anger flared at him out of nowhere. He never cared about anyone or anything else. He had no idea what teamwork was. She came up behind him saying, “Zach--,” but before she could continue, his arm flew out behind him to sweep in toward her head. On full reflex, she ducked under it and he jumped back away from her, realizing his mistake.

      Too surprised to say anything, they both stared at each other. Zach had forgotten just how quick she was. It shocked him. Not two hours out of a two day recovery and she was already dodging his blows. Impressive. Shige just blinked at him. His hands were still up in boxing style, his eyes wide behind them. He probably didn’t realize he’d almost just brained her. His strange expression reminded her of how he used to be…so unapproachable.

      Zach had just showed up one day at the base gates with no explanation. Shige and Laurel had expected him to not pass the initial tests; he hardly said a thing, and when he did it was insulting and gruff. But he had been present very regularly at their team practices, granted off in a corner usually, and by then it was clear that Sergeant Haj and the higher ups had wanted to train him and make him part of their unit. Though he generally irritated everyone he came into contact with, everyone just put up with his bullshit, and if anything escalated too much, Sergeant Haj was always hovering there to break it up. And eventually, he was accepted as part of the team.

      But Shige did not get it. She hated that he lacked respect. He had this irritating way of ignoring everyone else’s hard work and strong points. She hated that he didn’t show up to every team practice, didn’t have to apparently, that he got to just punch stuff randomly and call it ‘practice’. She hated his ever-present glare, the way he didn’t have to say ‘yes, sir’ to the sarge, or participate in any of the partner training. They couldn’t help but trade insults every time they met.

      Shige snapped out of her shock, realizing she was just staring at him. “What the fuck are you doing?”

      Zach frowned, putting his hands down, and looked up out of his black-rimmed eyes and growled, “What the fuck are _you_ doing?”

      “Oh good!” They both startled and looked over to see Sargent Haj trotting over to them. He put his hands on both their shoulders, not exactly gently, and steered them back toward the group. “Today I want you two to work on the catapult move the squints discussed.” The sarge looked down at Shige, being propelled forward under his right hand.

      “ _Tch_! He almost punched me!” Shige looked incredulously up at the sarge. “How am I supposed to work with him?”

      Zach’s shoulder twitched from her harsh words under the sarge’s left hand. The sarge looked over to him. “She snuck up behind me. It was just a reflex.” The stripey blonde boy looked innocent, despite his scowl. Haj knew he’d tell it straight.

      “All right, you two. Settle down. Let’s do the brief, then we’ll start practice.” He pushed them both forward toward the gathered sitting group. Shige stormed off over to Laurel on the far side of the group and sat down next to her, crossing her arms in a huff.

      Laurel looked over, a sarcastic expression on her pale, waif-like face. “Dude, chill.”

      “I almost got my head punched off!” Shige whisper-yelled. “Why is it that _I_ have to chill?”

      Laurel looked over at Zach, sitting on the far side of the group, pointedly not looking over. Was he blushing? Even his neck was flushed red. He seemed really focused on watching sarge setting up his phone projector for the brief.

      “Why is he even here? How is everyone else putting up with him? What does sarge want him for?” Shige looked pleadingly at Laurel. Not like she’d get any real help from her. Laurel was model-pretty and had a blasé attitude about everything.

      “You know why he’s here. Because the army wants him here, he needs to practice with the team, and because sarge said so,” Laurel said like it was the thousandth time she’d said so. Maybe it was. “And I _know_ sarge told you to get along with him. So just take that as an order.”

      “I’m trying, man, I’m trying,” Shige rubbed her eyes, willing them not to glare over at Zach. “He just irritates the shit out of me.”

      Sarge had finished messing with the projector screen and he cleared his throat. “Alright, everyone. Intelligence gave us this new data.” An image popped up on screen of the Entryway portals around the world and in the space around Earth. It showed possible entry logistics of the previous attacks of Skorgs. “We have two new waves of Skorgs incoming by 17 August.” Everyone looked around at each other. “We’re doing great with this team formation, but we’ve lost two and we gained three more. Integration is key, and teamwork is primary!” Sarge shot a look at Shige. “Everyone has their individual skill to practice but we can’t rely on just one strong member, as you know. We’re going to practice unit work and piggyback plays, so I’m gonna work with a few of you in groups and the squints will be here to adjust your gear accordingly.”

      Everyone started to disperse to their training and Sarge said in his low voice, “Kentarou.”

      Zach stopped mid-step, a metal rod seemingly jolted through his spine. Fists going into a clench, he slowly turned, “Sarge?” He hated being called that— _Kentarou_. Memories flashed through him of angry teachers, sadistic reform school leaders, foster parents.

      Shige started chuckling, seeing that Zach was singled out to receive some sort of punishment or terrible task. She could tell by the way Sargent Haj’s eyes squinted and his eyebrows flattened out. She leaned over, deftly checking her behind-the-knee sensors on her suit, taking too long, enjoying seeing Zach stiffen up.

      The sarge said, “I want you to practice what we talked about earlier. I think Shige would be a good fit.”

      Shige nearly jolted out of her skin when she heard the sarge’s words. She looked at Zach, who was giving a short nod to Sargent Haj, his eyes going darker within their black rings, his muscular shoulders stiffening under his shirt. Sarge nodded back, then turned to wave Shige over.

      In a daze, Shige listened as Sargent Haj detailed a ‘piggyback play’ to make use of both of their skills: Shige’s short-range teleportation and Zach’s amplified force gloves.

      They’d had simulated battles before, and once they’d worked together in a real Entryway. That Skorg battle had gone so quick and Shige was obviously busy trying to fight off the rabid rat-like Skorgs and protect her life that she only had one memory of seeing Zach in battle. And he was impressive in that short glance she’d had: seemingly twice as large, throwing punches that knocked a Skorg into a pulp on the ground, and generally hulking out in a yelling rage.  

      Shige wordlessly walked to a clear part of the gym and got into stance, then glanced at Zach. Zach glanced back and after a too-long stretch of silence, grunted: “Are you ready or what?”

      “Obviously.” She shot him a searing look, trying to ignore the way her blood felt like it was beginning to boil.

      Sarge was occupied elsewhere, watching Laurel and a squint adjust her amperage. Zach humphed and looked away. They began working on their combined force teleport move and soon got into a rhythm of prepare, execute, fail, adjust. But, of course, after the ‘fail’ part, unlike any other person who would discuss what went wrong and how to fix it, Zach let loose the first insult.

      “You suck,” he said after she missed their connection and caused him to whack his head on the floor.

      “You suck too.” Shige ground out, and went to get back into place.

      They missed, again and again, trying to align themselves for a good combination.

      “Your timing is shit.” He stomped off again.

      “Well, you’re shit at pulling your arms in.” Her voice was getting out of control.

      “No. You just have the wrong angle. Again,” he growled lowly.

      They practiced like that for another half an hour, but it was no surprise to them and everyone else when the sarge had to step in and call it a day. And although they got relieved of the torture of working with each other, Zach was slightly disappointed. He felt like he was finally getting somewhere with Shige. He felt like she really revealed herself and her strengths when she was angry like that. She too was frankly a little bummed to see the glint fade out of Zach’s eyes as they were separated. The guy was a dick but she knew he could fight well on his own. It was just a shame he couldn’t work with others. Her blood still felt electrified, as it had through the entire exercise.

      Shige waited until the locker room to unleash her fury. The whole time she changed, she thought back to the dimming glow of the fire going out of Zach’s eyes as they were sent their separate ways. Everything he did just seemed to just make her even madder. Slamming her locker door closed, she ejected “Fuck him!” to no one in particular. Laurel, however, was in the next row of lockers over and muttered “I’m sure you’d like that.”

      Shige swished her brown hair around in a shocked spin and popped around the wall of lockers angrily just as Laurel was picking up her clothes. “What? What did you say?”

      “Hm? Oh. Nothing.” Laurel smiled crookedly, her straight blonde hair up in a bun now. “Let’s go eat, I’m starved.” She walked out, forcing Shige to follow her.

      They walked down the hall, Laurel with her graceful glide, drawing anyone’s stare she passed. “Why do you hate him so much?”

      “Um, excuse me? He hates _me._ ” Shige was indignant.

      “No more than he hates anything else. I think he’s just thug like that. I wouldn’t take it so personally.” Laurel waved her hand dismissively as they rounded the corner to the mess hall. “It seems to me that you like to antagonize him, or something.” She grabbed a tray.

      “What?!” Shige stopped walking, two people in flight suits stepped around her to get at the food line. “I do not! I’m trying to work with him!”

      Laurel moved over to a table, settling her tray down and straddling the bench fashionably, arranging her food. “Well, you certainly are the most worked up over him.”

      Shige began sputtering protests but Laurel cut in, “Look,” pointing at Shige’s tray, “you didn’t even get a fork or a water. Something’s getting to you.” Shige turned red and plopped her tray down, stomping back into line in a cloud of silent fury.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there they go again...


	3. avoidance, confrontation

 

      Zach Kentarou woke up in a panting sweat. He’d dreamed of the last battle, and the first one: A Skorg was lurching toward his neck, claws dragging down his chest. It surely would’ve gutted him if he hadn’t had on the steel chest plate. The air was full of screaming and guns going off, in the distance loud sounds of buildings exploding and falling, the dust of crumbled structures billowing through the air. He coughed, growling, shoving the body of the Skorg away, noticing both his hands were full of weapons. He saw himself winding up to whack its head with the pipe he held in his bloody knuckled hand. The Skorg lunged in its creepy rat-like way and Zach reacted, raising his left hand, which held a gun. He shot once at the lower body, but out of nowhere, his dog launched itself into the path, going for the Skorg, but getting the bullet.

      Zach always woke up here, thankfully, grabbing his chest, expecting to find Skorg claw wounds, and feeling tears on his face, sliding into his ears. He hated that. He wiped the wetness out of his ears and threw the blanket off, bending down to jam on his running shoes. He opened his footlocker quietly and slipped into a sweatshirt and pants. Outside was dangerous at night, even on this old Navy base, but a jog always helped him.

      When he came back in, he’d decided to lay low, to not react to Shige, even under pressure. He wanted to just fight well, do well, and not piss her off anymore. The problem was that he never knew what would piss her off; it seemed so random. He never knew where she would strike, or why. And he always tried to stay level, stay honest, and not say shit. He’d learned that on the street, the guys he’d been with, the crews in Southie, that kind of shit was dangerous. And he knew that sometimes someone came right at you, singled you out. He hoped he could just let the sarge put him in another formation, because when someone came at him, it was hard to hold back. But this was a girl, not a street thug. A nice girl, a kind of pretty girl, or woman, whatever, she was probably a few years older. So he couldn’t just up and jump her, set shit straight. No, the best would be to just stay away. Avoidance. Pretty soon it’d just be them against the fucking Skorgs, and not Shige against him.

     

      His footsteps echoed in the empty halls. Zach walked with his head slightly down, hands stuffed deep in his pockets, fingers curled loosely inside. He’d been avoiding Shige pretty well for the past two days, though it sucked. He only had so much patience with her cold words and harsh resentment. But he could keep his head clear and just turn the other way when he saw her. He learned that from living with his dad. Best to just tread lightly lest you awaken the beast. Zach’s dark eyes, only half revealed from under his lowered brow, scanned back and forth as he passed other hallways, always keeping an eye out for Shige’s form. If he saw her, all he had to do was turn the other way, and keep walking.

      “There!” Shige jostled Laurel as they walked to the barracks. “He did it again! Did you see? He just turned the other way!” Laurel was shocked that Shige could even spot Zach passing the entrance to the gym locker rooms from sixty feet down the hall.

      “I don’t get you, Shige. Isn’t this something you should be happy about? I thought you didn’t like him.” Laurel recovered easily.

      “Well, I don’t know. I don’t see the point in him avoiding me!” Shige waved her hands around. “I mean, we have team practice today, and we’ll probably be working together again…” Shige trailed off. What _did_ she mean?

      “Maybe he’s being considerate?” Laurel suggested. “He knows you hate him.” She looked at Shige and stopped her protest with a look. “Maybe he’s trying not to piss you off?”

      “If he knows I hate him and he hates me then why wouldn’t he just fight like normal?” She mused as they walked. “It’s all weird now.”

      Laurel wondered if she would get any peace from this drama any time soon.

 

      A few hours later, Shige slid the door open on the practice gym. The fluorescent lighting shone garishly down from their cages on the ceiling. As her eyes adjusted, she glanced around and saw the sarge approaching her. He was wearing PT clothes and as he approached said, “It’s your lucky day.” He stopped in front of her and put his hands on his hips, his black hair tamed, his dark eyebrows pulled down in a teasing manner. “Your favorite sparring partner is busy.” He glanced over to Zach, and Shige followed his eyes.

      Zach was practicing a strange blocking move, with Laurel. Laurel’s hair was electrifying up and out, then it would drop as the charge left her. Zach was moving his arms in crossed blocking, but Shige couldn’t see everything they were doing, couldn’t see his expression. She frowned.

      “Nice to have a day off from Kentarou, right?” Sergeant Haj waited for her answer, but when it came it was not what he expected.

      Shige broke her gaze and squinted her eyes at the sarge, “Did you order Zach to avoid me, for the past couple days?”

      The joking smirk turned into a frown on his face. “What I order to who is not your business, missy.”

      “You’re right, sir, I’m sorry, sir.” She said immediately, falling back into her training, and snapping out of her strange thoughts.

      “Now you said you wanted some suit time so let’s work on that.” Sergeant Haj was all business now.

      Despite her scolding, Shige had a good practice and spent some much needed time adjusting and getting used to her knee sensors and the fur mustache. The mustache sensor she wore over her upper lip, definitely of alien design and origin, a spoil of war, used a system of tracking exhales and pheromones from her nose. The Skorgs were an animalian race, and very physical: large rat-like creatures living in a society of perpetual war under battle conditions. Their weapons and devices made use of their animalistic nature. Shige could appreciate all that. They were a formidable enemy. But it was tough to get the suit to respond to a human sometimes. The sarge was being patient with her, letting her try moves over and over, working with the teleport. She’d gotten so involved that catching an appraising glance from Zach at the end of a particularly good set almost knocked her off her feet.

      She had been glancing up from adjusting her knee sensors once again, when she remembered that there was something nagging at the back of her brain. Oh yeah, it was Zach, and the way he’d been avoiding her, and as soon as she recalled that, she looked up, and there he was, his burning eyes surrounded in darkness, tunneling right into her. The shock of locking eyes took her breath away and the sarge said, “Do you need to take a break?”

      “Huh? No, nooo. Fine.” This little punk was not gonna knock her off her game. Not when she was doing pretty alright against the sarge. “What do you think?” Even as Shige asked the sarge for input, her eyes wandered to Zach to see him and Laurel back to sparring. She thought her moves worked a little better with his than Laurel’s did but…

      “—Shige!” Sarge was glowering.

      “Sorry, sorry, sir. You’re right. I think that I need to practice more with the mustache/sword combo too.” Luckily her brain had caught what he was saying as she daydreamed.

      “Well, alright then.” Haj looked her up and down wearily. He had his suspicions about her and Zach, but….He watched her to see if her eyes flicked over to Zach. He observed her restless fingers, her arching eyebrows, her suspicious eyes. “Let’s get to work on that, then, shall we?”

      The rest of the practice was full of ups and downs, highs of adrenaline, lows of dehydration, panting, moving, sweating, laughing. Whenever she smiled with the pride of completion, or performed something perfectly in sync and high-fived the sarge, she couldn’t help but look over to Zach. Was he watching her too? Most of the time, she was disappointed that he wasn’t. She shook it off and continued. Once, she thought she saw him smiling too. Laurel was laughing and they had just both gotten shocked from one of her charges misfiring.

      Suddenly, Laurel stiffened and fell backwards. Zach moved forward to grab her but Seargent Haj yelled out: “Don’t touch her, Zach! She’s charged!”

      They all crowded around. Haj yelling orders: “Maki get the squints and the full-arm gloves! Shige bring me that mat!” Haj looked closely over Laurel’s body, looking for the signs of her inward charge. It was rare, but it did happen occasionally. In a normal voice, he said, “The rest of you can dress down, help each other if necessary, and go on with your normal schedule. I’ll be in Med Recovery with Laurel and some squints.” He glanced up at Shige. “Don’t worry, this has happened before, she’ll be fine.” He looked at Zach, “Not your fault Zach, don’t even try to make it.”

      The crease between Zach’s eyebrows deepened and he scowled, “I’m not sure what happened, but we both got shocked…but it was fine for a minute, then…”

      Some squints ran in with arm-length oven mitt things. Haj pulled the mat over and they slid her onto it.

      “It’s fine, Zach. Why don’t you help Shige get out of her suit? It takes two, you know.” He had time to take in Kentarou’s expression of shock and then he rushed out after the squints carrying Laurel.

      “You don’t really have to help, you know.” Shige said. 

      “I’m not disobeying an order because of you.” He crossed his arms.

      “Fine.”

      They made their way into the locker room for more privacy, and though Shige led Zach to the side generally known as the ‘girls’ side’ Zach didn’t flinch or make a face. She sat down on a bench, a leg on either side, and, sighing, put her hands on her thighs.

      “Okay.” She was suddenly nervous. “There are a few things that are connected and we have to break the seals together, Okay?” Zach merely nodded, face blank. “Here, sit down like this.” She motioned to him. He sat facing her. She put one leg up on the bench in between his legs. Shige bent to remove her shoes and suddenly having half her legs bared made her flush with heat. Zach was just looking at her, letting her get ready, his eyes intense, half-lidded, and following her movement, fingers twitching on his thighs. “Alright, _whew_.” Shige had to release her breath, hoping her nervousness escaped with it. He’d been avoiding her so long and now he filled her vision, silent and concentrated, staring. She started: “Can you put your hands here? Behind my knees, with two fingers, like this.”

      Zach pushed his sleeves up and planted his feet squarely, scooting closer to her on the bench, a slow heat starting to creep up the back of his neck. He ignored it. The sweat from their practice had cooled but the lingering clamminess was being reactivated on his back. He moved with his usual efficient determination, placing his rough fingers on the soft part behind her knees, the smoothness of it sending a thrill up his arms. His mouth twitched before he could suppress it.

      He was looking down at his task, but Shige was watching his face, and a million things to say were swirling around in her head. But she pressed on.

      “On three, you have to grab the edge of the sensor patches and rip them off outward—like a band-aid. I have to detach this head piece at the same time.”

      “Why?” He looked up. There was no malice in his face, no teasing, nothing clouding his eyes.

      Shige was thrown off by that. “I don’t know,” she frowned. “It’s a Skorg thing.” He then frowned back, looking down. She sighed. “It messes up the alignment of the sensors if you don’t. And it took a lot of work to get them right.” There was a real answer, not a snappy comeback. He deserved it for asking honestly, she supposed.

      His hard callouses on the back of her knees was really distracting.

      “I’m ready,” he said.

      The buildup was coming to a head now in her chest and she didn’t think she could take it any longer with him touching her, and everyone gone, and the room being so quiet…

      “Why were you avoiding me?” Shige blurted out.

      “I—wh—You’re always yelling at me!” His golden eyes went wide. “We fight constantly! If you don’t like me, we don’t need to be around each other any more than we have to. Right?” He spoke loudly, for him.

      “No. I mean, we have to work together,” Shige started, “and we need to practice together without killing each other.” She faltered, didn’t remember what the idea was. “Look, let’s just go back to normal, Okay? I know I was yelling, but you’re not the nicest person either…”

      “See, you don’t even like me. I was doing you a favor…”

      “Ok but…”

      “I’m not the one attacking _you_ every time—” he stood up.

      He was getting red in the face. She had to stop this. It was all going wrong. “I’m sorry! I mean…you don’t have to avoid me. Just do what you normally do, okay?”

      “Fine,” he turned to walk out.

      “Wait,” she called. He turned back. Shige motioned at her suit. “Can we finish this?”

      He stormed over and sat back down straddling the bench, pulling her legs in toward his crotch gruffly. She was practically sitting in his lap now and her toes were on the warmth of his thighs. She was so flustered by this position, she stopped breathing. Something about it, his grabbing her, his red cheeks, his boiling eyes. She was staring at him, her heart racing. She was insanely turned on.

      “Well?” He growled. He clutched the back of her knees up to him harshly, his cheeks felt red and his eyes lowered in anger. Her skin was cool and he felt his own hot pulse resounding through his fingers on the back of her knees.

      “Right,” she snapped out of it and moved her hands to the head piece, blushing. “On three.”

      It was done easily and he left without another word.

 


	4. Sergeant Haj always has a plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know it's weird his name is zach. but most of this I wrote in a dream until i realized it was kyoutani. by then i had melded the two stories (dream and the one I was writing)...so i stuck with it.

      Zach was woken up with sarge’s hand on his shoulder, shaking him. He opened his eyes and the sarge said, “Suit up and meet me at C gate as soon as you can.” Zach nodded, tossing off the sheet. The sarge was already walking out.

      The steel plate resting against his chest and pulling on his shoulders settled Zach. He put on one glove as he walked up to C Gate, seeing the sarge in his camos and Maki in his suit. Maki’s suit was definitely cool, and Zach admired it. Plus Maki was a little older, and it was clear that sarge trusted him. Maki wielded a plasma gun and a sonic navigation visor. Sarge greeted him quietly.

      “Everything go okay with closing up yesterday?” Sarge asked him. Zach nodded.

      “Get Shige’s suit off alright?”

      “Oooh,” Maki whispered, “Taking off Shige’s suit? Nice, man.”

      Zach turned to glower at him, “Nice? She’s never nice,” Zach grumbled.

      “Alright, let’s focus,” Sarge cut in with his no-nonsense voice. “This will be a quick and quiet job. I didn’t need the whole team, and I figured you two could handle it.” Sarge watched as he got the two young men’s attention. “There’s a small flock of the Skorg’s spies coming up the corridor toward C Gate and I don’t want anyone else to be alerted or to get on the Skorg’s radar.” Zach and Maki nodded.

      “Maki, you’ll set up here first, blasting everything you see. They’ll probably be around two feet long. Use a level three charge, I think. Four if you have to.”

      “Sounds good.”

      “Kentarou, you get anything that comes past Maki’s sweep.”  

      Zach nodded, looking at Maki then for confirmation. Something inside Zach thrilled. This is what he was missing.

      Sarge growled, “Alright, let’s clean it up.”

 

      The next day Shige walked through the underground labyrinth to Med Recovery. When she entered, Laurel smiled from the bed. Shige walked around it to sit at the chair and put a little napkin with two cookies in it on the side table. “Hey.” Shige said. “I don’t know if you’re allowed, but …cookies!”

      Laurel smiled. “Hey, how was the rest of practice? I kind of don’t remember…Black out. You know, no big deal.”

      She was so blasé. Shige sighed, “Oh my god. I’m so glad you’re okay. I was freaked…”

      “It’s okay. It happens sometimes. Probably scared the crap out of Zach though, right?” Laurel raised her thin blonde eyebrows.

      “Hmm. Hard to tell. Sarge thought he was blaming himself, but he looked the same to me.” Shige began, then it all flashed before her eyes. “And…he helped me take off my suit.”

      “Ug! I’m so sorry I wasn’t there!” Laurel wailed. “Was it torture for you? I’m so sorry.” Laurel stopped because Shige hadn’t jumped in at the right part to bemoan her misfortune. Laurel wondered what she’d missed.

      “No, it was fine,” Shige began to feel heat creeping up her neck. “But I did tell him to just stop avoiding me and go back to normal.”

      “Hm.” Laurel was quiet, watching the expressions on Shige’s face, trying to read them. Suddenly it was too much effort and she leaned back on the pillows, sighing.

      Shige snapped out of it and took the hint. “But anyways. You’re getting out tonight? Or tomorrow?” She stood up.

      Laurel shrugged, “Up to the squints. Probably tonight. Thanks for the cookies.” They waved as Shige walked out.

      Shige moved down the hall, aimlessly wandering at first, and then decided to stop by the mess hall to see if anyone was eating. She poked her head in, but nobody was there, just a guy cleaning pots in the back. She turned her steps back to the barracks and let her mind wander. She’d take the long way. _Where was everyone?_ She roamed past the brass offices, didn’t see Sarge lingering in the main lobby, or talking to the clerks. Past the labs, some squints, doing their squint thing. Nobody was around. _Where was…Zach?_ Her mood was slowly spiraling into depression and confusion. She tried humming a bit of an old song, strolling with her hands shoved deeper into her pockets. She had lots to read back at the barracks. She should just go there directly. Was she actually looking for that maniac? She told herself she was just looking around for anyone. It couldn’t be possible, yet around and around she walked, finally giving up and heading right back to her bunk.

      She spent the rest of the day reading a paper a squint wrote on her power. It was alright. She went to dinner, just grabbed a sandwich to go since there was no one in there she really knew enough to sit with. No Zach there either.

      In the morning, she slept late, still feeling a little depressed, and finally drug herself in to the main part of the bathroom, where the big sinks were.

      “Heya, Maki,” she mumbled in her tank top and sweats, stopping at a sink near him to brush her teeth. She spit and looked up again. “Woah, Maki. You got some blood on your arm there, near the back.”

      “Huh?” Maki looked a little out of it, “Oh. Yep. Got it.” He swiped at his arm vaguely with a wet hand.

      “So uh, what’s with the blood?” Shige was keeping cool. Maki was in his camos, but looked a bit rough.

      “Oh man,” Maki yawned. “Just got back from a little cleanup assignment with Sarge and Kentarou.” He chuckled like he hadn’t slept all night. Which was true.

      Shige made a noise of acknowledgement and bent to wash her face which was suddenly very hot. _So that’s where Zach was all day and night._

      “Yep, a little target practice on some spy-sized Skorgs. Guess one got a little too close while Kentarou was clobbering it…ew.” Maki moved his sleeve to get a closer look, and decided to just take it off and chuck it toward the laundry.

      Shige was inwardly relieved to hear something about him. She didn’t know if she was jealous or what that he got picked for a special assignment with Sarge. But, she had to admit that his and Maki’s powers were more useful than hers, for that task anyway. She focused again and Maki was now shirtless two sinks away, his pale yellowish skin rippling over his muscular shoulders and arms. She was strangely not moved by his exceptional body. His hair was silvery black and a little longer than chin length. He was pretty in a Spanish or Italian way, she guessed. She imagined him in a trench with Zach beside him, muddy and sweaty and shooting. I her mind, the shirtless Maki faded away and she focused on a scowling Zach, battling in the trenches. What the hell was she even thinking about?

      “Well, get some sleep, I guess,” Shige managed to wrap up with Maki. “I’m heading to see the squints. Good job.”

      “Thanks, I’ll pass it on to Zach too.” Maki smiled as she walked away, but that made her falter in her steps.

      “Oh, you don’t have to,” She blushed lightly when Maki raised an eyebrow. “I mean, yeah, good job, guys.” Fumbling a little bit, she rushed to get dressed and outside. She willed herself to behave and talk normally for the rest of the day. It took a lot of will.

     

      “Alright, we’re gonna do more paired practices today,” Sergeant Haj continued after the Skorgs brief. “Laurel, you’re with me today. Maki and Nate, you know what to do. Shige and Zach, I want you to practice the accelerated throws. The squints can coach you on release time if you need it, but I think you’ll figure it out.” He clapped loudly. “Let’s focus people! Time is not on your side.”

      One of the younger squints moved over to Shige as Zach approached. He began brusquely, “So just to reiterate, you need to teleport directly in and out of his zone, to couple your force.” Shige made a disgusted face when he said ‘couple’ but kept listening. Zach walked up and stood near her, and they tried not to be distracted by the other while listening to the short brief. “In layman’s terms, Kentarou, you’re transferring the accrued force of Shige’s teleportation to channel into your glove as it’s moving toward your target.”

      “That was layman’s terms?” He grumbled quietly for only Shige to hear.

      She surprised herself by snuffling a quiet laugh. _Did Zach just make a joke?_ She glanced quickly at him to look for a smile, but his face was its normal light scowl, the black rings around his golden eyes a mixture of intimidating and stylish. She thought of Egyptian pharaohs. _What the hell is wrong with you?_ She wondered internally as the brief wrapped up.

      “Alright, let’s not fuck this up,” she heard herself say.

      As if the sarge could sense her inner monologue he strode over, saying, “Are we going to focus today? Shige? Kentarou?” He looked into both of their eyes to check for something only he could see. He nodded to get a response out of them.

      “Yes Sarge,” Shige said as Zach nodded once, determinedly. Sergeant Haj seemed to get what he wanted from them and then returned to work with Laurel.

      They both got into stance in the far side of the gym. She raised her eyebrows at him to check if he was ready. He lowered his eyebrows in response and raised his gloved fist a little more. She took that as a yes and began her approach. She had gotten used to the shock of teleporting the second time she’d ever tried it, probably because it’d saved her from the jaws of a Skorg. After that it became easy. But when the squints and the brass started thinking of ways for it to be used by other soldiers, it made her life difficult again. It was so hard to sync with someone. It took time and practice, and a good feel for your strengths and weaknesses.

      They missed the first five or six times and Shige could feel Laurel’s eyes on them. Shige steeled herself and withheld any crappy or sassy comment she wanted to make to Zach. Zach seemed to be doing the same. Finally they got one right and Zach felt the power coursing through his glove. He looked up at Shige and his eyes flashed the way that they did last time they practiced together. She let a shiver of excitement go through her and allowed herself a small smile.

      The whole gym seemed to relax and Zach felt a weight lift from his shoulders as everyone began to ignore them again and return to their own practicing. Shige battled within herself to remain calm as the next try failed. And the next few after that. She lost count as her positivity plummeted. She felt a strong grip on her elbow and Zach hoisted her up from a stumble.

      “You’re a little off,” he said quietly, no malice in his low rumble.

      Shige merely yanked her arm out of his grip. “ _You’re a little_ …” Shige began hissing through her teeth, but knew it was totally her fault they weren’t getting it. It wasn’t Zach’s fault. She released a stress-filled breath. “Alright, let’s go again.”

      They got back into it, a repetitive process that went upwards of half an hour. They worked up a light sheen of sweat and pulled closer and closer to their goal, making minor adjustments to their arms, their foot placement, their angle. The sarge stood back and watched how they worked together, saw that they exchanged only a few words, sometimes none, sometimes just a nod. But Haj knew something was happening here. They were getting it. He was actually impressed. Laurel came over and whispered to him, “So it’s finally working, huh? Took them long enough.”

      “Eh, it’s not happening yet.” The factors weren’t all there. Plus, they actually only had nailed about one fifth of their tries. Haj knew something was still missing, but they were getting there. Two more stubborn people never existed. It’s too bad they were both also talented, and that he needed them to work together. Sergeant Haj lamented his existence. Goddamn army shit.

      Meanwhile Zach had been ignoring the information his senses were shoving in his face: the smell of Shige’s sweat when she swept past his body in her teleporting, the way the strange ionized air popped her into his vision suddenly, the way he could feel her short fingers through his protective arm gauntlet. If it was supposed to protect him from blades and bullets, how come he could feel her hand resting on it? He refused to look in her eyes as she transferred her power to his glove; if he did he’d surely focus on them and not on his part of the combo. Her eyes looked angry. _Was she angry at him? At herself?_

      Finally it was time to stop. They were snapped out of it by Sarge and when they looked around, everyone else had already gone. One squint stayed behind, taking notes near the door. They both trudged over to the sidelines where their water bottles were waiting. Sarge trailed them and spoke as they chugged their water.

      “Very good today. I see it’s all coming together. You have some gems in there and I want you to think about what made those work, okay?” He patted their shoulders in a rare display of affection. They both straightened up under his hand. “Talk about it if you want to, but do think about it too.” He looked at both of them, trying to see further into their dynamic. “See you for lights out.”

      They both just stood there drinking for a bit more, letting their breathing wind down. Zach picked up his large boxing-sized gloves and headed back to the locker room. “Need help?” He ejected.

      “If Laurel’s not there…” Shige drawled in fatigue. She was too tired to care who helped with her suit as she clomped through the gym, the mustache tube hanging off the headpiece and whacking her on the cheek as she walked, her booties shuffling on the floor. Her head was fuzzy inside from coming down off the adrenaline, and she wasn’t thinking hardly at all. It vaguely occurred to her that Zach had turned and stopped and was waiting for her, to help her take off her suit. _Wow_ , she thought fuzzily, _maybe he’s not a dick_.

      “Jesus, you have no fucking stamina,” Zach muttered from the door of the locker room as she lazily caught up to him.

      Shige smirked. _Nope. Still a dick._ “Just trying to think about practice systematically, like Sarge said,” Shige shuffled over. They made their way to the bench in the locker room.

      “Well, hurry up. I gotta take a shower,” he grumbled, keeping his light eyes cast down. He took off his jacket and the black cutoff shirt he was wearing underneath revealed his muscular shoulders and arms in the greenish lights of the locker room.

      Shige swallowed and sat on the bench, a flood of heat suddenly washing down her face and neck. She wanted to be in that shower too, washing his body all over. She took off her shoes and put her legs up on the bench between his. He put his hands behind her knees again, his calloused hands again meeting the soft backs of her knees to find the sensors of her suit. She put her hands up to her headpiece, ready to detach it in sync. She looked into his eyes for the first time since the gym. He looked serious and nodded at her to go.

      “On three, two, one. Go.” They both removed the sensors in sync. Shige began to put her legs down, looking away, but his hands didn’t move.

      “We did better today,” he suddenly said. His low gravely voice louder in the quiet room of metal lockers.

      Shige huffed, glanced at him, and entered a strange part of her brain, ignoring his hands still on her legs. “I didn’t.” She looked at him, losing herself in his yellow eyes, the black rings around them hypnotic. “You did good.”

      He swallowed at her praise. There was a second of silence. Then he lunged at her, his hands leaving her legs and grabbing her shoulders. He kissed her quickly but forcefully, crushing her lips with his. He stood, panting for two seconds and watching her with a scowl on his face. Shige looked up at him, mouth agape, silent in shock. He started suddenly for the door and was out before she had time to move. After a minute, she touched two fingers to her lips to make sure.

 


	5. awareness

      Shige, like everyone else in the barracks, was woken by Sergeant Haj, who was standing in the doorway banging on it with his fist and saying, “Come on, get your asses up and dressed for PT. We’re going on a nice morning run—and I mean everyone.” He stalked over and yanked on Laurel’s foot as she was sliding up her sleeping mask. “Come on twinkle toes, get with it.” He growled.

      Shige’s first thought after devoting her attention to the sarge was to look over at Kentarou, who seemed to be studiously avoiding her eyes. He did look a little sheepish as he was pulling his shirt on, but she made sure to flick her eyes down from his face to his torso for a glimpse to last her through the day.

      She was a mess of emotions and it pissed her off; she thought dark and conflicting thoughts as she angrily brushed her teeth. “Bullshit,” she spit into the sink. She was supposed to be the calm one, the cool and collected one, the practical one. What was she supposed to think when the guy whom she hated—and who hated her!—suddenly kissed her? And how she couldn’t—could absolutely not!—go back to normal no matter how hard she tried.

      “Fuck this bullshit,” she mumbled to herself out on the training grounds as they began their run. She was next to Laurel, using her as a shield. Laurel arched an eyebrow at her, thinking Shige was talking about the fact that they had to jog as a group. Sarge began his running chant-songs and Shige let the call and response format take over her mind gladly. But it burned in the back of her mind that she had to corner Zach after the run. She had to know what the hell he was thinking!

 

      After the jog, Zach was electrified and loose, feeling the blood course through his legs and hands. A steady burn from Shige’s eyes scathed the back of his head. He ruffled the ribbed stripes shaved into the back of his hair, managed to avoid her eyes yet again, and jumped and inch in the air when a hand landed heavily on his shoulder.

      Sarge clapped his shoulder once again when Zach whipped around, saying, “Kentarou. Come with me.” Zach released his nervous breath and followed the Sarge away from the group.

      Shige cursed quietly as she saw Zach being led away. She’d missed her chance to talk about the kiss and what the hell he meant by that. Her bangs were sticking slightly to her sweaty forehead, but she tried to blow them up and off. Maki laughed at her efforts as he sauntered by. She glowered. Laurel next to her made an appreciative noise as Maki did his cool down routine. Laurel elbowed Shige, pointing with her eyes, saying, “Eh? Maki, right?” But Shige just continued to grumble. Laurel caught the word ‘Kentarou’ and sighed, walking away to leave Shige in her foul mood. Maki was way more interesting right now.

 

      Zach moved through the streets of South Boston, checking every doorway, every alley and up into the fire escapes, under cars. He knew Sarge was a street over doing the same, the radio clicked occasionally to let him know he was there.  The quiet of the city let him focus on what was happening in his being. Zach was interested in this new way he felt his body. He scrunched up his face in wonder at how super attuned he felt. Ever since kissing Shige, his physical senses had become more acute, more in the forefront of his awareness. He felt his knee cartilage rolling slowly around his patella as he crab-walked around a truck. He heard birds settling on a fire escape across the street, flapping and cooing, the cooing resounding in his ears in a strange and fuzzy way. They sounded happy. A little smile quirked his mouth as he remembered the image of Shige shuffling into the changing room, arms lax, a smile/sneer on her wide pretty mouth. He shook the irrelevant thoughts out of his head.

      Kentarou’s striped head kept on a swivel, looking around, but was enveloped by feelings that everything was shiny and new. It was the same old crummy area he’d grown up in; he knew it well. Sarge had chosen him for help to scope out this Entryway because Zach had spent his teenage years on these very streets. He crouched behind a car, looking left right, up and down, then he ran across Broadway street and down L street. Same grime, same house-fronts, same stoops. But everything looked fresh, clean almost, like it had potential just shimmering beneath the surface. He imagined Shige in a window here, pulling back a curtain, waving, the sun sparkling. A bird flapped abruptly overhead and he ducked and cursed lowly. He was letting himself get distracted. He needed to focus.

      He could think about Shige later. “Clearing L street now,” he clicked into Sarge. “ _Roger_ ,” he heard back. Searching each and every side walkway between houses and miniscule carports, he sighed, trying to keep his head in the job. This area was predicted by the squints to be the next Skorg Entryway. They triangulated with star charts and landing patters to figure out the next portals, and the brass made sure that we cleared each zone, preparing for everything possible, removing every potential obstacle or problem. He remembered a previous Entryway battle at Damascus and kept an eye out for good cover.  

 


	6. the real thing

They stood, battle-ready, in the park near Edison, M street, and Broadway in South Boston. It had the electric feel that every Entryway port does when the Skorgs activate it. The Sarge and Laurel, Maki and Nate, Kentarou and Shige. The sarge was looking over everyone’s suit as they all checked themselves and each other. “Alright, it’s the real thing. But not too bad this time. These are medium caliber Skorgs. We think three of them, but we’ll see. No radio outgoing, but if we’re wrapping it up, I’ll call you in.” He paced up and down, catching their eyes, giving the brief. “You looked at the maps, know your zones, know the hot spots.” He looked at Kentarou, knowing he had intimate knowledge of the area. “We’re going to split up. Watch each other’s back. Keep quiet and calm. Use your strengths, and stay frosty.”

      Sarge motioned each team it opposite directions, gave everyone one last little finger salute, and crept away with Laurel in tow. The thrill of real danger was heavy in the air. Shige knew Zach would lead them well, as he had an advantage in this Entryway. Though the squints check out everything before hand as much as possible, there were always surprises. The Skorgs were crafty rats. Their whole existence was battle and intrigue, bloodlines and armies and backstabbing. Many comparisons had been made in the beginning of the invasion between their way of life and warring periods of the early and middle ages.

      Shige and Zach crept quietly through the small streets, feeling the eeriness and emptiness all around them. “We should get up high, to look for the Skorgs from up there, the roof. We’ll be able to see farther.” Shige suggested as they trotted down the middle of Broadway. Instead of a fight from Zach, what she got was a short grunt of agreement as he tilted his head up to look for a good access point. He turned left and Shige followed as he turned again and popped himself up onto a dumpster, grabbing up for the fire ladder.

      They tried to ascend as silently as possible, but the old metal had other ideas. As they walked to the edge of the roof, the sea air hit them, and Shige sighed. They both sank into a crouch looking out toward the little beach. Zach made a small sound of contentment. “Smells good.”

      Shige looked at him out of the side of her eye. He glanced back, and with no change in his lightly scowling face told her, “This was my street, you know. I grew up over there.” He pointed to a block of townhouses, all crammed together with three-step stoops. Shige simply nodded as they continued to scan the streets below for any movement or sounds of Skorgs.

      “Was that hairstyle popular here?” She smirked, looking at his blonde head with black stripes.

      His frown drew deep lines around his pouty mouth. “No. But it helped.”

      “Helped you find other bumble bees?” Shige joked.

      “Helped keep assholes like you away and off my back. Helped me find a little peace and quiet.”

      It probably was intimidating to a lot of people, and would keep bullies and whoever off his case and out of his business, she thought. “Doesn’t seem to work anymore.”

      “Tell me about it,” he huffed, dropping a wall internally. “Why are you always bothering me?”

      “Me? Because you bother me!” Color was rising to her cheeks.

      “Shhh!!” He tried not to get wrapped up in this, remembering they were on a lookout.

      “You get to do whatever you want and we all have to follow the rules!” Shige hissed in a loud whisper.

      “What rules?” A storm began to brew on his features. “You think there’s rules where there aren’t any. You’re keeping yourself in your own little box. Don’t blame me for that.” He said lowly, his golden eyes churning as they bore into her.

      She could feel waves of heat coming off his body. The wind up on the roof was getting into the little folds of her suit and clothing, but he seemed to be emanating energy. She was silent, her mind turning and opening at his words, getting lost in the deep cavern of darkness surrounding his glowing eyes. Was it true? Was she holding herself back? Could she do whatever she wanted like Kentarou? _With_ Kentarou? The heat coming out of is eyes and off his body was mesmerizing.

      Suddenly there was a scuttling sound from below and they saw a medium sized Skorg in light armor hugging the walls of the alley, moving down it quickly, taking cover here and there behind cans and parked cars. They heard another and realized there were a team of Skorgs down there.

      They looked back at each other and started making frantic hand signs about what to do next. Shige convinced him to jump down on to the Skorgs from above, huge punching glove first. Then at the last minute, she would teleport in and help accelerate his smashing fist into the ground. He nodded, determined. She was a little shaken, seeing the aliens in person, but knew their plan could work.  

      They crept further down the roof, alongside to where one of the Skorgs was crouched, two full stories above it. Another Skorg crept around the mouth of the alley toward it. Perfect timing. Zach’s eyes gleamed with hatred and an evil grin began twisting his mouth as he raised his fist in preparation. He put his foot up on the edge of the roof and looked over at Shige. Shige wasn’t sure if it was the light behind him or the wind ruffling his clothing, but Kentarou seemed to swell in size just then, his arms and shoulders looked taut and bulging, a vein in his neck throbbing and his toothy grin flashing in the light. She was blinded by his power for a second, but realized he was looking to her to connect their thoughts. He needed to know she would teleport in at the right second, to add her force to his downward blow. She nodded.

      He pushed off with his boot; she saw the power in his thigh as it propelled him over and down toward the Skorgs. She watched in slow motion, counting in her head. She began to activate her mustache sensors and saw the view of the world warp before her eyes. She landed against his back with the force of her mass and together they made a cannonball of propulsion, slamming into the ground just next to the Skorgs in the alley, Zach’s giant glove landing first, creating a crater in the blacktop with its power and rumbling the dumpsters and smashing the glass out of the cars all around them. He landed with his right fist and left knee down like a superhero, Shige’s body rolling off his back into a heap on the ground. As he raised his head he noted one Skorg down, with blood coming out of its mouth and ears, knocked out, possibly fatally from the force of their landing. The other was stunned and laid out a few meters away. Zach grabbed a shard of glass and metal from a busted car and ran toward it, jamming the shard in its throat before it had time to recover. The strong rear legs of the Skorg, however, jerked up and clawed him away in a fierce disemboweling motion like a kangaroo. He was thrown backward, panting and checking over himself for injuries as Shige rose to her feet to run to him, keeping an eye on the Skorg.

      “I’m alright,” he said as she reached him, not telling her about the intense bruising scrape he’d received. They watched the other Skorg bleed out, legs twitching. There was a clang from the other end of the alley and another skittering sound.

      “More?” she questioned. Though she knew the sarge would most likely call them all in by radio if there were no more blips of them on radar.

      “Let’s find out,” he began trotting that way, hugging the alley wall and glancing up and behind them, looking everywhere. “You okay?” He asked as an afterthought.

      “I’m good,” she followed him. “It worked.” She stated. “Good sync.” He didn’t think that needed a response, so they approached the alley mouth in silence, peering around, looking everywhere, listening closely.

      “This street opens up down that way. Not good for us.” He stated. She remembered this was his neighborhood before the invasion. “There’s a few little side alleys that run this way. Let’s get to one of those.” She followed him silently watching his round bleach-blonde head and its crazy stripes, his strong neck, thinking of their awesome move, their syncing, and how he’d opened up about his past a little, after she’d bugged him of course. Thoughts of his flexing thigh and his bulging neck flashed erotically in her head. She shook it to erase the images and focus.

      They made it across the larger street, Broadway, he’d said. She wondered if the sounds they’d heard were more of their people. There was no way to know until they ran into each other. They were forbidden to use the radio outgoing in the field like this, the noise and frequencies were something the Skorgs had learned to hone in on. They had just slipped into a shady little alley between I and J Streets, crowded carports with branches overhanging the walkway. A weird kind of groaning sound floated over the air and they both flattened against the wall. However, they had unfortunately chosen opposite walls; Zach had rightly chosen the one in the shadows, Shige was in the open. He motioned her to come to him; he was tucked into a garage corner. The weird groaning sound came again. Zach motioned more frantically.

      “Teleport!” He mouthed at her.

      Of course! Why didn’t she think of that before? She had to get it just right…She crouched, the back of her knee touching the cool sensor, the exhale through her nose telling the suit what to do. Zach watched it all from his hidden spot. Instantly she was gone. Then she was in front of him, on him, her arms pulled up to his chest, and, painfully, her hip pack holding the gps and radio, jammed into his injury with all the force of her teleport. He grabbed her hips, pushing her slightly away from his painful side, but wanting to keep her pulled in the shadow of the wall.

      He growled in pain and her bare hand went up to cover his mouth. “Shh!” She said desperately, not wanting to blow their good hiding spot. He was shocked into stillness. His golden eyes surrounded by black circles were wide above her hand. She could feel his breath from his nose cascading over her fingers. They were pressed up against each other, trying to share the sliver of dark shadow in the dank alley. They were both breathing deeply, she from her teleport and the fear of being found out, and he from the sharp pain in his side she’d just caused. Her breath blew her bangs up and to the side in little waves, her light brown eyes wide with adrenaline. His vision was full with only Shige. He felt her body pressed all up alongside his. He pursed his mouth out to reach the hand covering his mouth. She felt him kiss the inside of her hand and was shocked at how soft it felt. Her eyes widened in realization, locking with his.

      Her heart was thundering in her ears, but she strained to hear any Skorg movement. He’d just kissed— _kissed_ –her hand. She felt the dampness there, but she could not remove her eyes from his. The black rims around his gold eyes made them seem like they were boring into her, and everything around them faded out. Like it was moving on its own, she felt her hand sliding down off his mouth, the drag of his lips sensuously soft on her finger pads. As her hand came down, she pressed forward to place her lips on his. His hands instinctively tightened on her hips. Her lips were nice when they weren’t arguing with him, he thought briefly. He shut his mind off quickly after that thought and accessed that feeling of clear awareness he’d felt before on Sarge’s mission.

      Suddenly he could feel everything acutely, her breath from her nose on his cheek, the feeling of her thigh pushing on his, the beating of her heart through his chest plate—it practically resounded with the rhythm of it. He opened his mouth in the midst of their kiss, using the motion to open hers as well. But as she did, and his wide tongue went inside, she released a moaning breath. Her erotic sound shocked both of them. Their eyes snapped open. He broke the kiss a second later, saying, “shh” and she smiled into his face, going back in for more. She didn't know he could have such a soft...everything. His cheek, his plush lips, the hot breath from his mouth on her neck. It gave her goosebumps and a strange jolt low in her stomach.

      Their tongues twisted and turned around the other, their breathing becoming pants. Zach mentally added ‘silent kissing’ to his list of wartime skills with an inner smirk. Shige didn’t know how much time had passed or what the warmth in her lower stomach was all about but her hand needed to slide up his hot smooth neck to let her fingers slip into his strange hair. It was always on her mind and now was the perfect time to feel it. She tried to keep control of her inhibitions, tried to keep listening for any movement in the alley, but her brain was slowly unraveling as she felt his left hand on her waist, and his large gloved right hand sliding her closer into him at a strange angle. He wanted her to avoid his side. Was he hurt there? She mused as the kiss continued. His strong jaw was moving in a circular motion making their kiss deeper and deeper. He seemed to be hulking out and towering over her suddenly, but she wasn’t complaining. She became so pliant under his power.

      Abruptly, two things happened in quick succession: both of their radios squawked the phrase “Return to drop point”, and Shige instinctually activated her teleport.

      The result being that they both flew, still embracing, back about four feet, smashing into the opposite wall of the garage, limbs entangling in the reflex to escape, and both sprung apart from the other, ejecting started phrases of “Heh!” and “What the-!?”

      As they stood in ready stance in the shadowy alley, Zach said “I didn’t know you could do that.”

      Shige just panted in shock.

      “Did you know you could? Teleport two people like that?” Zach looked at her, glancing down to her lips to take in their slicked and puffy state.

      “I mean, maybe? Sort of? Yes? I was just…that scared the shit out of me!” She put her hands on her knees in relief. “Whew.”

      Now that they had broken the kiss, neither of them knew what to do. Or what to say. They glanced at each other, their eyes noting the other one sizing them up. Finally Zach turned, saying, “They said to return to the drop spot. So let’s go.” Shige straightened up and followed his back.


	7. Skorg

 

      Zach Kentarou led them quietly through the streets of South Boston. Shige trailed close behind him, watching the movement of his body. He seemed to be favoring left side, but she didn’t see anything dire. It was helpful to be at an Entryway Port where she could read the street signs. She thought back to their battle at Damascus, in their large park in the center of the city. It was hot, so hot there. But there she had seen the real power of Kentarou’s gloves, and the force that he could get out of them with just his own body, how they accentuated his natural strength. She recalled his jump off the roof just an hour ago and how when she rolled off his back and looked up at him from the ground how impressive he was in his landing crouch stance, fist in a huge crater and the world shaking all around him. If she wasn’t careful, it was scenes like that that would draw her into love. Seeing someone so impressive, so good at what they do, was like adding a glow around them. Shige wondered what Zach saw when he looked at her. He didn’t seem to that often.

      Shige was knocked out of her train of thought by Zach’s motion of freezing in a crouch. She was crouched behind him and leaned in toward his neck, whispering, “What?” As she waited for a response, she studied the back of his head, and the black stripes on bleach blonde. _Where did he get hair dye? Did Sarge get it for him?_

      “I think there is something around here,” he whispered back. She silently studied his eyes, her ears straining to hear anything.

      “Maybe another Skorg?” She whispered. He shrugged. Pointing at his ear, then out around them. They stayed still, crouching there, eyes sweeping all around the street, up the buildings, the roofs, the alleys, the few trees.

      Shige could see the park up ahead, at the top of the hill. They were on Broadway Street. Their rendezvous point was the water side of the park, near the corner, by the mailbox.

      “Let’s get to the rendezvous,” she said. He bored his eyes into her, then nodded. “What?” She said louder. “Do you have a better idea?”

      He looked away, crossing over into the grass of the park as she followed, silently stewing. His usual deep scowl back on his face, creasing his forehead. _How could he have looked so sensual and alluring like minutes ago?_ Shige wondered. _How did we end up kissing?_

“With the rules again. What are you so afraid of?” He growled.

      “What? I’m just getting to the rendezvous. Following orders.” She could hear her voice rising.

      “Our first order was to eliminate the Skorgs,” his chestplate bonged a steel bell sound as he thumped his chest. “There still could be one out there.” He stopped and faced her, pointing out.

      “Maybe. Maybe it wasn’t a Skorg.”

      He was silent, scowling, looking into her eyes. The black rings around his golden eyes now seemed intimidating to her. He was turning the corner into becoming an asshole again, and she couldn’t stop it. He was huffing, glaring, like a dog. “Whoa boy, calm down.” As soon as she said that, she knew it was wrong.

      “Why do you do that? Why can’t you be the way you want?” He started railing at her. She would listen for now. “And why didn’t you just leave me alone? Like I wanted to work with you or anyone!”

      “You’re no peach to work with either, _Kentarou_ —”

      “—don’t call me that—”

      “But we have to be a team! You slink around like a _mad dog_ and expect us to be in awe of your powers or whatever—”

      Suddenly Zach’s eyes widened and his arm shot toward her neck. Shige’s first thought was: _here we go. He’s actually going to choke me now_. But when she opened her eyes, Zach’s leather-clad arm was extended past her neck and his hand was halfway into the mouth of a snarling Skorg.

      She inhaled sharply and twisted around, coming to Zach’s side, her eyes wide. She grabbed his arm.

      “Don’t pull!” He gritted out. The Skorg was snarling and biting down into his glove. “Fuck,” he growled. She tried to think. How to fight it this close? Her whole way of fighting was, in essence, avoidance. The Skorg was a large rat-like creature, but stood on its hind legs. It was wearing a hammered gold helmet, like a Roman. It wore a reddish vest for its only clothing, and it had medals and badges hanging from its chest.

      “Get back, the claws,” Zach was saying as she snapped out of her observations. Then she remembered the last one had clawed his side, that’s why he was limping…she looked down at Zach's body. She saw a knife. She grabbed it off his belt.

      “No, Shige, just get back!” he said louder, yelling over the strange grunts and growls from the Skorg. It seemed to be hurt. Its body shuddered and the war medals it was wearing jangled.

      But she was not thinking now, the blood pumping at breakneck speed through her ears was deafening her, and the knife was solid in her hands. Zach looked pale and there was so much blood running down his arm. She plunged forward, putting the knife deep into the Skorg’s long neck. She put it in the side of the neck, and then realized the tough muscle was there. She should’ve put it in the front of the neck, she thought. She dragged the blade with both hands through its neck to the front where the windpipe was. The Skorg kicked her with strong legs, but she held on. The force of its kick actually helped her pull the blade further down its body.

      The Skorg was so close. She smelled its horrible breath, looked closely at its coarsely furry body, saw its eyes rolling under a golden helmet. Shige looked down, and saw Zach slumping down, his arm released from the huge jaws. She released the knife and pushed the Skorg’s chest with as much force as she could. Then she knelt down to Zach. The kneeling motion made her incredibly dizzy and as she looked down she saw her side was bleeding where the Skorg had kicked her. _No time for that now._

      Kentarou's body was so heavy and solid, and she hoped this would work, for her brain function seemed to be so foggy. She reached up to make sure the mustache sensor was in place, said a silent prayer to whatever, and then tried to make her brain be in the same place as before, in the alley, when she’d transported them both….

      But everything was fading, fading out….

 

     


	8. Bruised, bandaged, and bold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the short chapters. just trying to get it all out before the sex scene! hold out Kentarou! 
> 
> Next chapter is in the works...

 

      Shige woke up slowly, blinking up at a white lit ceiling. Her head throbbed, her body was sore and something was beeping. She turned her head to the right, getting a bit of hair in her mouth. Bleh. Oh, it was Med Lab. She rubbed her eyes and looked to the left. She saw the next bed, and Zach was laying in it, being very still. He was awake though, quietly watching her.

      “What,” She winced as her jaw popped. “Is there something on my face?” she reached up, aching.

      “Yeah, a huge bruise.” His voice was a gravelly rumble, and she found that unbearably sexy as it wove its way into her throbbing head.

      “Well,” she countered. “You don’t look so hot yourself.”

      “Yes I do.”

      Shige let out a little scoffing laugh and he blushed, saying, “I mean I’m not injured.”

      “You so are!” She gestured at his bandaged hand. “What then, you just like to sleep here in the med beds regularly?”

      “Yeah, sarge lets me. Whenever I want.” He pouted, looking away.

      “ _Pshst_. I’m sure.”

      A companionable silence settled over them. They both seemed to be reviewing their past conversations, the training and fights, the arguments and avoidance. Kentarou put his arm out across the space between their beds. “I’m sorry you got hurt. I should’ve…”  He looked down, remembering the last Skorg fight. Shige surprisingly took his hand.

      “…I’m ok. Kinda sore,” her mind whirling, she crawled off her bed and boldly over onto his. “You?” She snuggled with half her body on his. He let out a little _oof_ as she put her arms resting on his chest so she could look up into his face. His cheeks were red now but his arm went around her to pull her in from the edge of the bed. 

      “Yeah, I’m sore too.” He  said, and tried to remember everything they had said before the Skorg came and he blacked out. But this feeling of someone so close to him, so pretty, so soft…he didn’t know what to do. But she seemed to want to lead the way, so he let himself just go with it. He was too damn tired to think of what shit it could land him in. He sighed.

      “Well,” she looked up into his eyes as she settled on top of him, “you did very good.” 

      A shiver wracked his body and Shige felt him squirm under her. This was the second time she called him good and the second time he’d reacted like that. She wasn’t that old, but it was clear to her when men were turned on, and it was surely happening now. She’d been through extreme ups and down with Kentarou in the last few days and she felt emotionally and physically drained. But the warmth radiating up out of his body was lulling her into a strange euphoric state. “What?”

      “No one ever says that to me.” He mumbled, and looked away from her gaze. It was hard for him to hold people’s stares too long. Unless he was the one trying to intimidate someone. Then he could glare death at them all day. But this was different, her soft brown eyes, under soft brown bangs looking up at him. There was a look in her eyes he didn’t understand. “I’m usually the bad one, the fuckup.”

      She was stung inside at how sad that was. Even she thought he was bad at first. “Well, you do give off those signals.”

      His scowl came back.

      “At first,” Shige hurried to say. His face relaxed again as he wiggled, trying to find a comfortable spot on the bed.

      Shige felt the warmth of his body suddenly increase in a certain part. A slow growth of heat and hardness began pressing into her hip. “Thank you for choking that Skorg and saving me.” His heart thudded under her as she spoke, his chest rising and falling. “I’m sorry I lost your knife…in…its body.” He laughed lowly with his mouth closed, and she could feel the rumble going through him.

      Zach was looking at her intensely, almost a glare. He was trying to figure out what to do next. “Here,” he said, “get under the blanket.” He leaned up, wincing at the pain in his side where the Skorg had scraped him. She slid off the bed to climb in properly. “Fuck,” he grumbled as they squeezed into the bed made for one person. “Your feet are fucking cold as shit.”

      She just rubbed them on his calves and leaned more onto him, finding a good position. “Zach.”

      “Hm?”

      “You still fucking piss me off.” She tried to get through to him in his language.

      His face became serious, his eyelids lowering, his eyes filling with anger, but she pressed on. “but…I…want to _be_ with you. If you can stand it…..I know you don’t like people.”

      “Yeah, you included.”

      “What?” She drew back to look into his eyes. “No. You like me.”

      His mouth dropped open in a scoff. “You fucking piss me off too.” He growled. “But it sounds like it’s _you_ who likes me.”

      Shige’s face was red and her head was pounding with nervousness and pain from the Skorg, but she moved, sliding on top of him, pressed up against him, and kissed his soft lips. He hummed and opened his mouth, letting her tongue into his hot mouth. He pushed his out against hers and entwined their tongues. He groaned as she ground her pelvis down onto his hardening dick. _Oh fuck, this is gonna be good_ , he thought.


	9. Toss it all aside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a little more...

 

Shige watched through her wispy brown bangs as Kentarou made her favorite expression: golden-hazel eyes flashing with a brief display of challenge and excitement, eyebrows lowering to an almost glare level, sides of his pink lips lifting off his teeth in a sneering smirk.

      Ug. She mentally shook her head at herself. _Favorite_. Now she realized she’d actually had a favorite of his expressions. It baffled her as she lay resting on the side of his chest. What the hell had happened from two weeks ago when she’d hated his guts? Or four weeks ago when he was just goddamn annoying?

      Shige snickered a little to herself and drummed on his chest. He grimaced. _Embarrassing_ , he thought. Is that what liking someone was like? Did he have a crush? He certainly _didn’t_ feel like sitting with her in the mess hall every day, or walking with her after debriefing. But he certainly _did_ want to press their bodies together so that he could smell her skin and feel her heart beat excitedly against him. He wanted to encircle her tiny wrist with his hand and yank her body into his chest, into his embrace, pull her in tight with her head tucked into his neck and fight off a Skorg with his other arm.

      “That expression,” she said, still looking at his glaring smirk. “What is it?”

      “I’m trying not to be provoked by you, but you kind of have a knack for it.” He scowled.

      “Go ahead then,” she teased, leaning her mouth down to lick between his fingers. “Try it.”

      His skin tasted salty and faintly bitter. She could feel the growl that rumbled from his chest. Despite her bravado, Shige was feeling lightheaded and felt her cheeks flush as he raised his hands to grab her jaw in them.

      Pure liquid want surged through Zach’s veins and he felt that feral grin spread over his face and a tremor go through his legs. His calloused thumbs brushed over her silky cheeks and traced her plump bottom lip. Her brown eyes almost looked imploring and puppy-ish.

      “Maybe I just will.”

      The kiss was exactly a reflection of Zach Kentarou’s character in her head. It was full of the need to control, to dominate with breathless power. It overwhelmed her with its ferocity. He flipped her onto her back with a power that did not belie either of their injuries. She closed her eyes to stop some of the sensation overload. He pressed one of his thumbs into the side of her mouth, his large finger pad pressing down on her molars and forcing her mouth open. Her blood was pounding in her ears and she heard herself whining in a rising tone as he shoved his tongue in as well.

      He pulled away after an intense minute of feeling all over her mouth. Her face was held tight in his hands. “Shige,” he breathed into her face. The scent of his breath triggered something deep in her, like an ancient protohuman response.

      It took her a second to react; her head was elsewhere. “Hmm?” _Was he asking something…?_

      “I…want you,” he looked into her eyes unwaveringly. Her bangs were drifting up and down with their breath. Shit, he was going to kill her. She could die from this feeling. Which is why she locked her legs around his torso and let herself be pinned under his mouth, just letting her brain melt and getting lost in the smell of his breath and the heat of his body.

      “I want….more.” She managed to moan out into his neck while he was nuzzling her.

      “Me too,” he let his hands slide down her ribs, bumping over each one with intent. She arched up into his stroke when she realized what he was doing.

      Kentarou chuckled sadistically. “I see. Impatient. Don’t worry we’re getting there.”

      “Just,” she sat up, pouting, “don’t hold back….don’t be nervous.”

      “Hey, I’m not nervous,” he scowled. _Right? Or was he…?_

      He wanted to fight that patronizing accusation and continue that bullshit argument, but she put her arms out, wanting his warmth back in the bed. She took him into a deep kiss, tilting her mouth and running her hands up into his crazy hair. He tugged on her med clothes and asked her with his eyes if he could go further. She lifted her arms as he undressed her, sitting back on his heels in the bed.

      “Fuck.” He held her clothes against him as he looked her figure up and down.

      “What?”

      “Fucking-A, Shige. You just,” he shook his head in awe. “You look so fucking good right now.”

      Shige blushed at her nudity and the severity of the compliment.

      “Come on then.” She tried to brush aside the awkwardness that was building, but it all magically went away as she watched him crawl up her body with an evilly lustful look. He really did have the craziest glare, the way the dark rings around his light eyes made him look like a wolf or a madman—it was sexy as hell, and she was trembling with excitement.

 


	10. Forces collide, forces combine

 

Outside the window of the MedLab, the Sarge and the onsite doctor stood embarrassed. Clearly, the two patients they observed were post-coital, flopped over Kentarou’s bed with the sheet thankfully covering most of them.

      “I don’t really need to go in there right now,” the doctor said. He was the typical greasy haired squint, overworked and deadpan.

      “I’m thinking about it, just to fuck with them,” Seargeant Haj said mutedly, then chuckled at the look on the doctor’s face.

      “Miss Yahaba seems to have recovered from her injuries,” the doctor mumbled. Sarge was thrown off at first by Shige’s last name being used. It had been so long, even for him, that he’d even heard it used. He wondered if Zach knew her as anything other than Shige. They glanced back through the window. Kentarou moved and the sheet slipped off his muscly shoulder and down to his butt. At that point the two men turned away.

      “I think I have a meeting to go to,” Sergeant Haj ejected, and the doctor split apart and walked away.

 

Kentarou looked up from Shige’s neck, alert like an animal.

      “What?” Shige eyed his face for an expression, arms still around his neck.

      “Thought I heard something in the hall,” he looked back down to her. Her soft brown eyes held none of their usual acidic sarcasm. He whole body, though bony in parts and bruising all down her side, looked softer under the diffuse lighting. Or maybe it was just his new way of looking at her.

      “Maybe I should go back to my own bed?” She suggested in a whisper.

      In response be smashed his body down on her, burying his nose in her neck.

      “What’s your fascination with my neck?” She ran her fingers through his hair.

      “Mmm, smells good,” he said after a few second.

      “Very wolf-like of you,” she murmured, pushing her hips up into his. He growled and pushed back down, rubbing his growing erection on the sensitive tops of her thighs. She moaned, “maybe more dog-like.”

      “I’ll take that as a compliment,” Zach said, biting into the side of her neck. She hissed and arched up off the bed. She moved his face over for more kissing. With that he began to move more earnestly against her. It was like he couldn’t stop. Some fire was stoked in the pit of his stomach and it wouldn’t be satisfied until he had torn every last bit of desire out of her.

      He grabbed the base of his penis and started rubbing the shiny full head of it against her. She was still wet and leaking from their first time. He enjoyed the feeling of sliding it up and down on the outside of her. Not even going in felt great.

      She lifted the sheet up to look down between them. He was watching them slide together. She was watching him watching. “Again?” Shige asked, a little incredulously with a smirk.

      “MMhmm,” Zach was in the zone. “All day.”

      He was a man of few words. She snorted a little laugh, but gave in. It was hard to believe she’d hated this guy…sort of. He flipped her over suddenly and started massaging her butt and laying against her back. She moaned at the pleasant feeling. She moved his hands under her to cup her breast. It pulled him down on her more and he began thrusting up along the cleft of her butt. Her juices and his still lingering and making the slide of him intoxicating. He was overcome with an urge to hold her close, as close as possible, and he grabbed her up, his biceps flexing to their fullest. He held her close against his chest, her back to him, and sniffed her hair. His strong rough hands moved down, and she winced as he passed her Skorg injury.

      “Sorry,” he whispered in her ear. And it seemed to mean a little more to her.

      “Don’t be,” she whispered back and reached down to guide him into her. He knelt back onto his heels and pulled her close against him, an upright spooning, as she sunk down onto his length. His mind clouded over as he felt just how hot she was around him.

      They moved together in a haze, the sheet slipping completely off them, forgotten. Their minds were focused only on each other’s bodies. He had a flashback of holding her against him in the alleyway, the smell of her neck deep in his nose. She remembered him landing from the jump off the roof, his muscles taut and flexing in perfect use. She needed to feel them in her mouth, and bit and licked all over every part of him she could reach.

      Their first time was urgent, full of strange conflicts of feelings and releasing in a giant crescendo of energy. This time was slower, somehow harder, more at stake. Each thrust he put into her, he felt the tension of her body moving with his, to optimize it. She was sulky and lazy, he knew. But she’d done her training, and he felt it in her muscles, the way they shifted, the way she held herself back sometimes. He would not let her do that this time. He reached up to turn her face to him, to read her expression.

      “Don’t hold back,” he said. He wanted all of her. She smiled, remembering how she’d said that to him earlier.

     

 

      “I’m sorry if I overdid it,” Kentarou mumbled into Shige’s ear as they walked from the end of the debriefing towards the mess hall. “Do you want to come with me to the weight room later?” Zach had casually shouldered a bag of his gear and was glancing back over one shoulder to meet Shige’s eyes. They’re not holding hands or anything, but for some reason, Shige likes the way this feels.

      Maki came over to walk next to Zach. “Hey man, good to see you out. You really held it down the other day. It was cool teaming up with you.”

      Zach was genuinely touched by Maki’s outreaching. Though somewhere inside, he wanted to push him away with an insult. Something won out inside him and he just said “Thanks, you too,” very quietly between them and made no other reaction. Maki nodded and drifted away and the group continued to cross the field toward B Building. Shige became more of a presence next to him as his mind began clunking along again. He supposed she had always been walking near him, through Maki’s little speech, but he just didn’t have the processing power to handle both right now. He heard a quiet hum from her area.

      “So you can make friends,” she began sweetly. “You’re actually pretty soft, aren’t you?”

      “Pssht. Whatever. I’m fucking not.” He actually stopped walking to stand his ground, but she kept going. He took a couple bigger strides to catch up.

      “You’ll never get anywhere with girls, Kentarou, with that kind of shit.” Maki winked at Shige. Shige was thrown off for a second. The irony of what Zach had done to her last night made that statement hilarious to her and she snorted, holding in her laugh and glancing meaningfully at Kentarou. Kentarou’s eyes twinkled mischievously, but he just let Maki’s jab wash over him serenely, like he’d won the war, but not the battle.

 

 

      “You want some of this? Huh?” Kentarou stepped toward Shige, fists balled, as he retained his still hold on one of the squints’ jacket lapel. “You think I’m taking this too far or something? You got something to say?” He antagonized her, dragging the squint along too.

      The sarge could see Zach’s eyes flash from across the gym. He was marking on Laurel’s chart and adjusting her machine. Laurel noted where his attention was. She saw Shige up in Zach’s face and Zach glowering, looking ready to pop. A poor squint dangled from his grip and Shige seemed to be trying to disengage them.

      They were on opposite sides of the gym, but Sarge and Laurel watched on edge as Shige stalked over to Zach and grabbed _him_ by the front of his shirt. They were just out of hearing range, but Sarge could see the effect of what she was saying to him. He dropped the squint’s jacket; his posture deflated just a bit. He looked down at her and his eyebrows lost some of their rage arch. Laurel slipped up to where Sarge stood. Sarge watched Kentarou moving his lips. Agreeing? Arguing back?

      “Well, I see he listens to Shige now,” Laurel said coyly out of the side of her mouth to the Sarge, who was standing watching the two, ready to jump in and pull them apart any minute.

      “That’s something. Something different.” Sarge dropped his alert and turned back to the machine he was concentrating on. He remembered the brief scene in the MedLab and blushed.

      Laurel, watching his face, smirked in understanding.


	11. Extras: the original story off which this is based: SKORGS

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the original story "SKORGS" off of which i wrote this part two, delving into the life of Zach

Skorgs

 

 

        I put my legs through the bottom part of the suit again. The fabric felt wet and sticky. Zach was helping me get it on. There were straps and pieces that needed to be held a certain way as I sat down and slid in. It was dark in this Entryway. The Entryway was a moonlit country side, rolling silver-lit hills and a few bushes, a clump of fir trees. We were all quietly getting into our suits. I could hear the others mumbling instructions and advisements to each other. I had finally gotten the legs of the suit on and was strapping what I called the “fur mustache” part on over my lip. It looked like brown felt and received information from my exhales. Zach’s suit was black and bulky in the white moon light. I slid my right arm into the sword thing and wondered again about how we all managed this.

      The suits were just thrown together assemblages, worked out random pieces we or our predecessors had figured out over time. Little bits of information we’d learned from the aliens or quick fixes that had to be learned the hard way after a lethal encounter. I felt sometimes like the Skorgs gave us little clues, as if they wanted us to get better at fighting them.  With his dying breath I remember one saying to me, “set amplitude higher…do more damage next time.” After that round I had suggested to the team that maybe the Skorgs reincarnated, maybe they had been watching us grow somehow. I mean, I knew they were watching us as a race, as a planet, from somewhere, but as individuals, it seemed that they knew us…

      I had to focus as Zach helped me on with the left glove which contained the technical parts that allowed me to shift spatially around the realm. My suit and abilities were great in that I could basically teleport around, saving precious seconds by placing myself in the right position to help someone or teleporting just feet away to avoid an enemy blow.

      I still don’t know why we even sent out all those messages into space. Who writes open invitations to aliens letting them all know about us and our progress, our level of intelligence, even our location? What a bunch of nubes. What were they thinking? Hey! Come and kill us and take our planet! No big deal.

      I saw Laurel was ready, testing her suit and making all the hair on her head lift up in that crazy burst of electricity or whatever it was that she could do. Zach was checking over his gloves. I checked the sensors behind his knees for him.  He was a tough hood from Boston. He knew all the dirty fighting tricks. I don’t think he was afraid of anything except his dad.

      But aliens scare the shit out of me. Every time, it just happens so fast. Boom! They warp in through the Entryway and suddenly we’re all going at it. Nobody knows what the fuck is going on. It’s just a free for all fight and you hope no one gets in your way because you’re just flailing and cursing and throwing out everything you can and hoping your reflexes can keep you out of their reach.

 

      Last time we fought they dropped us at an Entryway in Damascus’s Capital Park. It seemed deserted, near nightfall, the bloody middle-eastern sun just going behind the ruins. I thought of the picture I’d seen of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in a school book. I said that out loud but Laurel was the only one who acknowledged it. I wondered if she went to college, back before the Skorgs. Zach was silent, looking for good cover and possible obstacles—a good soldier.

      I didn’t know the rest of the team very well. Zach and I had fought together before and Laurel was nice to me. We lost four soldiers last time and had only recovered three suits. Tech made a couple more and managed to weed through people to fill them properly. Sometimes it was hard to match a suit to a person.

      Suddenly the pressure dropped. My ears popped and Zach bellowed “Incoming!” The air wobbled and opened and about five or six large rats wearing pieces of gear leapt through the Entryway, claws swiping, mouths snarling….    

 

      Stop thinking and focus on the next battle…I should relax.

      I’ve always liked this kind of light. Out in the country here the only light is a full moon and everything that was green during the day is now a silver blue green in the night. The dew in the plants catches the light and adds a peaceful twinkle. We’re not a bad group. Everyone seems ok; they’re all suited up.

 

      I remember Zach yelling in fury in that Damascus park. I remember looking over and seeing him grow. It looked like he was so much bigger, his shoulders, his fists and thighs. But it could’ve been a trick of the light. His suit is superpowerful, though. Maybe he has the power to hulk out with his suit on, or maybe it’s his natural abilities. I’ll have to ask him. I’m proud of us, in a resigned way.

      It’s strange. Here we are, just a couple random people…and these crazy fucking rat-aliens looking like Splinter from the Ninja Turtles, kicking each other’s asses. But I’m sure this is just a test or something. If the Skorgs found us, after all our stupid open transmissions, then I’m sure they’re older, and smarter, you know, like an older brother that will win your fights ninety-nine percent of the time.

      But younger brothers can be crazy, stubborn, fight-to-the-death types, like we are. And there’s always that small, underdog chance that we’ll win. So I’m just going to sit here and enjoy this quiet little country scene until they come for us again.


End file.
